LDF Statement on the Justice Department’s New Interpretation of Federal Voting Rights Law

Last night, the Department of Justice (DOJ) submitted an amicus brief in the Supreme Court arguing that states are legally allowed to purge eligible voters from the rolls simply because they did not cast a ballot in the two most recent federal elections. This new interpretation of the National Voter Registration Act and the Help America Vote Act breaks with seven years of guidance from the DOJ. Sherrilyn Ifill, President and Director-Counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF), issued the following statement:

“Since taking office, this Administration has been hellbent on stripping eligible voters of their access to the ballot box. In keeping with their reversal in our Texas voter ID case, Veasey v. Perry, the Justice Department has once again discarded years of legal guidance and shirked its responsibility to defend the right to vote. The DOJ’s interpretation of federal law would leave Americans vulnerable to getting purged from the voter rolls, dispossessing millions of a fundamental right simply because they did not exercise it. Just as we have fought this Administration’s illegal voter suppression task force, we will continue to vigorously resist any attempt to undermine the franchise.”

Founded in 1940, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) is the nation’s first civil and human rights law organization and has been completely separate from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) since 1957—although LDF was originally founded by the NAACP and shares its commitment to equal rights. LDF’s Thurgood Marshall Institute is a multi-disciplinary and collaborative hub within LDF that launches targeted campaigns and undertakes innovative research to shape the civil rights narrative. In media attributions, please refer to us as the NAACP Legal Defense Fund or LDF.